Viral: Memories Lost and Found
by PissyNovelist
Summary: Part 2 to my previous fic Viral, a story in which zombies infested Hogwarts. What happened in the year between the Initial Outbreak to now? Hermione tells an Army officer the story of her life. But most importantly? Where is Severus Snape?
1. Just The Start

**QUICK NOTE: While this is a continuation of **_**Viral**_**, I do have a brief recap of it in this story. Maybe this fic can stand on its own, but I wouldn't be against you new visitors to my work to go off and read it.**

**I've found myself stumped on my other stories, and thought that **_**Viral**_** needed elaboration, perhaps something to answer all question linking to my two different endings. A lot of questions went unanswered, so I'm here to clear that up for you all, and perhaps drag me out of my writers block for my other stories.**

Hermione Granger sat within the hospital, wringing her hands together. Her wand was neatly hidden away within her beaded bag, which was buried within her messenger bag given to her by the late Harry Potter many moons ago. She ran her hand over the black material, hunching over to curl herself into a tight ball. Hermione found relief through the smell of the building. It was clean, like a dentist office. It reminded her of her parents.

_"Where are your parents?" Severus leaned his weary head upon his hand._

_"Dentist convention," Hermione shrugged as she scrounged her fridge ", want anything?"_

Hermione cringed at the far too fresh memory that made its presence known within her mind.

It had been a solid year and then some… since _it_ happened.

Hermione took a deep breath in, looking to her left and then her right. The walls were lined with somber looking people, none of which she knew. They were survivors of it. All of them were bloody, muddy, and crying. So many people had lost members of family. Mothers had lost children, men lost their lovers, and Hermione lost a team of good friends. Although she wouldn't sulk… she couldn't sulk. She wasn't the one who lost their young children to the creatures that still roamed the streets despite the Army stepping in.

She did, however, feel remorse at leaving England to go to America once she had found England to be overrun. America was no better, but it was the only place she could think of at the time. Ron had visited it, and had planned to take her to Los Angeles once they graduated Hogwarts together. She had made that dream partially come true. Although she currently sat in a lumpy hospital chair in LA, instead of under the Hollywood sign.

_Snape used the sharper end of the rod to impale from the front to the back of Weasley's skull. Ron twitched and growled, weakly still trying to grab for Hermione until he finally stopped moving._

Hermione rubbed her eyes, feeling the waiting room was becoming too hot for her taste. She wanted to step foot outside, take a breath of fresh air, but she couldn't. The air smelt of flesh, and death itself. She took in a yawn, clutching the red and gold scarf to her nose. Whether it seemed weird to others around her, it was Ginny's and she adored the smell of her fire perfume. It was like a feminine mix version of Fire Whiskey and Butter Beer. It was Ginny, and Hermione did nothing but silently weep for her only female friend.

_Hoards began to crowd the buffet, groaning with pleasure and hunger. She had to shut the door, a single tear shedding for the young Ginny Weasley. Harry, being at the unfortunate angle, caught the last glimpse of the undead mass pulling Ginny's arm out of its socket with a distinctive pop to devour._

Hermione steeple her fingers as the men in uniform came out of the hospital rooms. They were using them for an interrogation type process. They wanted to know which people had experienced the beginning of the virus, and how it reached them. For a while, Hermione considered telling the men in camouflage the truth of her viral history. One moment she was sitting in her dorm room of her magical school, the next she was dragged into the dungeon quarters forced to make a potion to destroy the creatures escaping on a broomstick. The men would write it off as delirium, but at least she knew she was telling the truth. The thought of their faces if she told them the story made her smirk to herself. She saw her reflection within the marble floor, looking more like one of her best friends than ever in that moment.

_"You'll always be my best friend, Harry Potter." Hermione gasped, swinging into his temple. She shut her mouth tight as his tainted blood splattered into her face._

She could never forgive herself for that moment. Hermione knew she would be guilt stricken for a long time.

She groaned inwardly, pulling her favorite person's hat from her bag. Hermione placed the abnormal looking piece upon her head, ignoring the ignorant stares fellow survivors were casting her way. She ran a thumb and forefinger over the rim of the hat, reminding her of all the happy times with McGonagall's transfiguration class. Hermione smiled, avoiding the ugly memory of her death. Hermione could not deny of her pride for the older woman, accepting death with her own cheeky grin.

_"Save yourself… I'll hold them back. Now go."_

The Army soldiers took the woman sitting next to her in to a hospital room to get her story. Hermione started flipping through her mental notes, deciding on a way to tell the Army everything without having to actually lie. She began to think of ways to fudge the truth, removing the terms _magic_ and _dungeon quarters_ from her vocabulary for the interview.

Hermione looked at the clock on the wall, chewing her lip. Would the men ask to search her bag? Would they ask to look within her messenger bag, to only find the beaded bag? If they looked inside the beaded bag she adored so much, they would find a broom, her wand, her time turner, potions, and some other oddities for the muggle world. If she uncharmed it now, everything within her bag would pop out. She would simply have to prey they wouldn't check through her belongings.

Moments of an uncomfortable silence passed, a sudden chill hitting Hermione's bones. She pulled the midnight black cloak around her shoulders, snuggling into the thick blanket type cloth. She wanted to do nothing but sleep: eyes heavier than dumbbells. She hadn't had a decent night sleep since the day she found her hometown to be uninfected. That was saying something, seeing as she had to run off in the middle of the night.

_"This is an EMERGENCY BROADCAST…"_

"… _this is not a test_." Hermione let her thought become vocal half way through at merely a whispered tone. Hermione bit her lips, looking around to see if anyone heard. No one was giving her any more strange stares since she put on the hat, so she assumed no one heard. Or perhaps no one cared… neither did she, to be honest. Hermione yawned once more, shutting her eyes for a moment. Before any rest could be had, a handsome young man in uniform tapped her shoulder. Her heavy eyelids opened to reveal a death glare that wasn't a signature look of her own. The boy seemed to shy away until Hermione gave a warming smile. The purple under her eyes did nothing to flatter her face, but it did nothing to falter her looks either. She stood, following the blonde boy into the room.

"Miss, I am a solider but you can call me Ronald for today. Ron… for short. You look like you need a friend, so don't worry about formalities."

Hermione didn't look up from the table, for she didn't really care for anything after she heard Ronald. She hardly noticed the boy taking a full glass of water and placing it in front of her. She heard the clink of the glass against table, lifting her heard just enough to see the condensation upon the plastic cup.

"It's clean, from bottled water." Ronald gave a lopsided grin, reminding her of a better day far in her past.

"Thank you." Hermione's voice broke and cracked, not having been used for days… perhaps weeks. She hadn't been keeping track. A few gulps of water brought her voice back to normal. She sat up straight, back cracking from the strain.

"May I get your name?" Ronald tilted his head and placed his hands under his chin.

"I'm Hermione." She whispered, looking into his hazel eyes. She saw nothing as familiar as his name. Hermione longed to see _him_ within Ronald's eyes.

"Well Hermione, you can take as long as you'd like. I just need you to tell me how it all happened to you. Who you were with, why they aren't with you now, how were you exposed to it. I know it's hard, so just take all the time you need. We have all night."

Hermione looked out of the metal barred window, seeing the sun setting. She sighed, deciding it was best to get it all out now instead of dragging it out and wasting the boy's time. For a moment, she saw a hint of attraction within his eyes for her. She shook her head almost unnoticeably. She must have been the only young girl he has seen since the outbreak. Hermione took in a breath, shaking the glances he put her way off.

"It's a long story… Ronald." Hermione choked upon her words, not wanting to use the abbreviation of the name in question.

"I'm here to get the story, Miss Hermione."

"I was at school. It's a private school with dorms. I was with my friends, and before we knew it? One of my teachers stormed in and grabbed the entire lot of us. There were eight of us, if my memory serves me. We went into the basement for cover and we started to fall like flies. I watched them all go… my one Professor and I are the only ones that escaped. My home town wasn't infected as of that moment." Hermione rolled her head, cracking her neck with a few loud snaps.

"But it eventually did hit us." Hermione sipped her water once more, looking into a vacant spot in the room. There was no emotion within her voice. She was an emotion stone, but she really only had one man to thank for that. She was happy the boy hadn't asked her why a girl with an English accent be in America. It made her life a lot easier.

"We fled the town… we've been running ever since…" Hermione trailed off, looking almost hurt… almost destroyed.

"Miss, a fellow officer said there was someone else you mentioned when they found you? One… uh, Severus Snape?" Ronald leaned forward, believing her story to be close to over. But once Hermione raised an eyebrow, a know it all smirk upon her features… he knew he was wrong.

"I was getting too that. Once we started running? That's when it got particularly interesting."

**I just realized that probably raised more questions than answered. I'll get there, I promise.**

**xoxoPN**


	2. About One Year Ago

**Sorry for the wait, I have a ten page psychology paper due in January. It requires all of my attention, for I need to preform case studies.**

**If you'd like to participate, give me an inbox message and I'll see if you fit the ramifications to do my small little survey for my paper. **

"Severus, this is breathtaking." Hermione placed a hand to her chest as she placed a foot inside the large oak tree. It was like the magic tents: small on the outside, gargantuan on the inside.

"I used to come here... once upon a time." Severus Snape spoke in an almost somber voice. Hermione knew he spoke of the only other female in his life not related by blood.

"You met her here." Hermione spoke softly, not being able to feel obliged to compete for this love. She knew better than to fight and demand it all. The first love remains, like a deep wound leaving a scar in it's tracks.

Snape nodded with a sigh, sitting upon the twin bed that had gone unused for years. Hermione gave the entire space a quick muffle dusting, before looking at the opening in the trunk. The sun was just peaking over the horizon, light shining into their new home.

"It's a dead zone now, but I highly doubt it will remain that way. What do you want to do about the opening?" Hermione removed her shoes and blood stained jacket. Her denim jeans were undone, waiting for the door to have a permanent seal over it. He waved his wand without a word, a large boulder rolling in front of the entrance. Hermione stripped, laying under the warm blanket. The shade and breeze flowing through the trunk made it an unbearable low temperature. Severus merely sat, looking into his rough hands.

"If being here brings memories you wish to forget, we can leave." Hermione cut the silence, rolling to face his back. He turned with a sad smile, removing his own clothing.

"You need your rest, my sweet. I was simply reminiscing of my past. I loved her... Lily Evans. I loved her, but we were not meant to be. The girl meant for me is right here in my bed. " He snuggled close, taking an uncharacteristic submissive roll. Hermione took his hands within her own, placing a soft kiss upon his awkwardly shaped nose that Hermione happened to adore.

He was a dungeon bat with greasy hair and a hooked nose, and she loved every inch of him.

She stayed snuggled in the blankets as she threw a leg on either side of his hips. Hermione supported herself with her elbows, kissing Severus repeatedly with small pecks on the lips. Severus adored the attention, smirking after each kiss.

"I could lose you tomorrow. We should make of it what we can." Hermione smiled, a huge yawn overcoming her. Severus twirled her soft and yet greasy hair between his slender fingers.

"We're far from safe, you know that right?" Severus shut his eyes, holding Hermione tighter. He felt her nod against his chest with a soft sigh to pair. They slept through the night, waking up refreshed in the morning. After transfiguring a large rock into a washboard and grabbing some soap from her charmed bag, she sat cross legged by the small pond and scrubbed their dirty clothes. Hermione smiled, sun beaming upon her. It was a dead zone, not a walker for miles.

"Babe, we're going to have to go find a hospital at some point. For supplies if we can find it, just in case something happens to one of us." Hermione called softly, then realizing how awkward it was to call her once Potions Master babe. He didn't seem to mind, seeing as he wrapped his arms around her while she scrubbed away.

"The town is pretty infested. You're confident?" He spoke softly, holding her closer.

"We made it very far without medical supplies. It will get to the point when neither of us will have the energy to heal and wounds or broken bones. We need to try, sweetie." Hermione grabbed the wet clothes and brought them inside. She could have done them by magic, but she didn't want to take it for granted. The physical work was good for her, gaining upper body strength was an asset in this land of destorya. Hermione did, however, dry the clothes using magic. The pair took the time to fold and put away the clothing before shutting the boulder over the opening and setting out into the town on foot.

Hermione checked her charmed bag, seeing only her few potions she collected from Severus room, a broom, books, papers, and quills with a few bottles of ink. Hermione couldn't deny she had a bad feeling about today, but she knew they had to do this. Severus sensed her anxiety, placing a hand on her back on the outskirts of the town. With an affirmative nod, they made their way into the town with axes and baseball bats in tow. Dead bodies were strewn amongst the streets, simply bones and clothing. A few walking dead here and there fed upon the corpses, not taking notice of the pair. Hermione smiled softly, making their way up the ramp to the hospital doors. Severus took lead, sneaking into the wedged automatic doors.

"Oh my god…" Hermione held her breath, the smell too much to handle.

What made it worse was that there were no corpses visible.

They took a few silent steps into the main waiting room, papers and gurneys all over the floor. Blood was smeared upon the walls from people being shot. Hermione chose not to think about whether the victims of the assault were alive at the time, instead of being walkers. Severus held his weapon at a better angle, turning into the corridors. To their right was a dead end, a pile of three bodies piled on top of each other. A handgun was mere inches away from the dead male nurses hands, blood drying upon the floor. Hermione gulped, walking forward. Written upon the walls in a bronzed substance was one of the few things Hermione would never forget.

"_God forgive us."_

Hermione bent down to grab the handgun, seeing bullet wounds within the heads of all the bodies. She thought, just for a moment, that they were the smart ones… the_ lucky_ ones. Yet she was thankful, for if the outbreak had not happened? Severus and she would be nothing near existent. She took the handgun back to Severus, holding it to him. Hermione had never needed to operate the gun, finding them to be too violent to even be considered usage. That was almost funny now. Back at Hogwarts, she would have loved for a few firearms to be lying around. Severus checked the clip to find no bullets.

"Keep it anyway. We may get lucky and come across some ammunition." He mouthed, not trusting the area to be completely empty. She nodded, tossing it into her beaded bag. She tucked it within her zip-up pocket that was on the inside of her jacket. The stepped around tipped over chairs and dead bodies fallen victim to suicide. Hermione pulled Severus by the hand when he tried to split up to check another room.

"We go together, just in case." Hermione's eyes pleaded, which he always fell for. She nodded, stepping into the ivory rooms. The scrounged up some gauze, pain killers, tranquilizer, morphine, and some stitching supplies upon the first floor. They made their ways through the floor, picking up medication, prescription and non-prescription, as well as more bandages and rubbing alcohol. They shoved as many first aid kits as they could find into her bag. Upon the sixth floor, they got lost, wandering for what seemed like days. Hermione was looking at the walls for a map when she felt a hand press against her chest.

"Hey! What was tha-" Hermione scoffed far too loudly, feeling Severus' hand cover her mouth. She then forced her to look forwards, the urge to throw up. She heard them groaning. But that wasn't the most terrifying part. Upon the silver doors, the label "_Morgue/Autopsy_" was black spray paint.

_Don't Open, DEAD Inside._

They're grey hands were sticking out, yellow finger nails clawing against the stainless steel doors. Hermione started to sweat, the board holding the door shut along with chains starting to tip out of it's placement between the handles.

"Let's go?" Hermione looked at the window on the floor, yanking out her wand.

"_Reducto_!" Hermione grabbed the broom from her bag and flew with Severus hugging her waist.

**Again, inbox me if you're interested in assisting psychology and science in a survey. It's anonymous and I won't judge. It's about homosexuals and homophobia. If it bothers you to answer some intense stuff, you probably shouldn't message me XD**

**And I love you if you get the references put in this chapter.**

**xoxoPN**


	3. Wallow In Self Pity

**Seeing as I have a fever of 102, and I'm probably going to die? I thought I'd do a third chapter XD**

"Let me get this straight… you found an abandon home, made your way to the hospital and almost got eaten alive?" Ronald was dumbfounded at their daring escape from sudden death.

"We were so scared. Severus and I ran… I have no idea how we managed how we survived." Hermione fudged the magical parts of her story, burying her face into her knees. She was freezing, despite the cloak draped over her body. The black fabric was worn from its years of 'experience'. Hermione stomach growled, causing her to double over in pain. The young boy solider touched her shoulder, heart aching for the beautiful woman in front of him.

"Want some food, sweetie?" She noticed a hint of southern accent in his voice. She nodded, hearing the door clasp. Hermione stood and leaned against the window pane, too weak to do much else. Distant gun fire and blast light came from afar. She saw the decomposed corpses shamble to the ground as lead invaded their body. She placed her hand against the glass, dust falling into her palm and down her arm. Hermione shivered, teeth clacking as Ronald stepped back within the room.

"This is what we have," he placed some coffee and fruit bars on the table "this okay?" Hermione sat back down with a nod, sipping the bitter liquid. She liked it… it grounded her. It gave Hermione a sense of what was real, and what was part of the dream world she was seeing due to lack of rest. The black darkness warmed her core, yet left her fingers and toes freezing. No matter how much she tucked them within the cloak, Hermione knew she would never be warm.

"So, Hermione… how have you survived this long? Your story sounds like ten percent luck and ninety percent magic."

_"Ma-magic doesn't r-really w-w-work on them, g-guys." Luna stared at her wand, her eyes overflowing with tears._

Hermione chuckled, looking at the boy.

"Magic had nothing to do with it. It was all luck."

"So this Severus man, tell me more about him." Ronald was giving her that dazed look again. How could he even consider flirting in the world of Armageddon? Hermione crossed her legs, looking to the ceiling, as if for answers about the man he asked of. She felt her hands go clammy, and her mouth become dry.

"He was a cold man, but not always. Loyalty and intelligence are the best words to describe him. He sacrificed himself for me and my friends… more than once. The first time he gave us quite a scare. He, uh… threw himself in front of a snake. It was a big, poisonous one to. Took a few bites to the neck, but he had a plan. He's a… he's _like_ a doctor, but better. I didn't know it at the time, but he had stuff hidden in his pockets. He was just fine." Hermione almost smiled at the night he came limping into the main hall. The scars on his body were bright and agitated, but he stalked in none the less.

"How did he heal himself?" Ronald was amazed, leaning forward and rubbing his hands together.

"I don't know," Hermione laughed ",_ magic_, I suppose." The pair laughed for a moment, one of them none the wiser. She massaged her shoeless feet, the appendages freezing to the bone.

"Do you need a break from telling your story? We can talk about something else. How old are you?"

"I'm twenty." Hermione coughed slightly as she drank the coffee.

"How old is this Severus guy who tagged along with you?"

"Forty. But he looked so much older. Time doesn't heal everything, especially the events he experienced to cause him to age in the first place." Hermione shook her head, thinking of Severus Snape. Hermione was going tired, and the boy knew it. She coughed weakly, wiping her nose on her sleeve in a very 'unlady' like manner.

"Would you like to rest before we finish?"

Hermione looked petrified. She shook her head violently, to the point where her entire head throbbed. Sleep meant vulnerability, and that meant nothing good. Hermione shivered some more, clearing her throat. Every time she shut her eyes, she felt the heat of her own face take over. Hermione then considered the events one more time, processing each gut-wrenching loss. It reminded her of an article she read far in the past about famous hockey players getting priority over regular people for flu shots. Hermione felt a flame of mischievous nature flutter inside her chest cavity. She turned, tilting her head to the left. She had picked that heart stopping move up from Severus.

"Tell me," She spoke without emotion ", what happened to your family… your friends… the ones you _love_?" Ronald gawked for a moment, not sure exactly what was going on. He chose to avoid her questions by asking meaningless ones.

"What's your favorite colour, Hermione? Perhaps you shouldn't waste your energy on such harsh questions."

"Your avoidance suggests it didn't end well. Far too common… I feel your pain, my dear." She shook her head and looked down.

"Well, my parents and friends are safe." Ronald smiled, hoping to lend a sense of security, but took notice how it flamed rage within her eyes.

"It is because you,_ sir_, are military and have safe places for you loved ones to go. I watched mine die. I couldn't do a single thing about it." She bore daggers into his body with her stare, rage like she had never felt before filling her entire body.

"You and Severus turned out alright." He had a naive, nervous laugh coating his tone that made Hermione feel anything but comfortable.

"Something I've learned about people in this type of life or death circumstance? Never get attached. People will leave you, people will die. You will stare down the barrel of a loaded gun more than once, and you are sure to lose yourself to."

Hermione and Ronald sat in silence some more, before she stood and looked out the window once more. The pleasant Los Angeles town she managed to make it to had transformed into hell on Earth. Burned trees, burned building… the smell of burned bodies.

"When there is no more room in hell, the dead will walk the Earth." Hermione spoke 'as a matter of fact', turning to her companion. A sputtered cough, and a glance at her hand that covered her hot lips she looked back outside at the grey smoke sky.

"When we got back to the treeeeee… uh, tree house." Hermione slapped her head for letting herself slip.

"Tree house? You never said anything about a-"

"I know, it's because you didn't let me finish. We hid out in the tree house for a few says, because the dead can't climb. Anyways, our scent attracted too many of them. In the day light, we had to move out. We got a good half way across the town before running into anything." She trailed off, remembering the events.

"Anything, miss?" His passive voice at that moment reminded her of Dobby.

"Yeah, anything. We ran into a lovely couple, with their child who wasn't quite past thirteen. She was still a baby. Chell… beautiful little girl. She has such light… it's almost tragic how much hope she held because we as adults knew…"

**It took me 4 hours to write this, man -.- I'm so sick to sit up properly .-.**

**xoxoPissyNovelist**


	4. Family Matters

**Geez guys, I'm really sorry about being gone so long. A lot of shit went down over the past… month? Is that how long I've been gone? I got laid off from my job, and I had to deal with friendzoning someone I care for dearly and my courses are nearing their end and coming up to exams. I have 5 projects due in the next two weeks. But I took time for you all because the inspiration is flowing.**

**Seriously, the place I was working at sucked all inspirational life out of me.**

"We can't stay here." Hermione scratched her head, able to smell the dead flowing from the door cracks of their lovely tree hide away.

"Ob…_viously_." Severus sneered. Hermione and he stared at each other for a moment, lips twitching from a pending reaction. Hermione giggled at the nostalgia of his oh so sarcastic routine. She leaned into him with a smile, holding his waist.

"Alright… we have to pack." He sighed, taking the task as a chore. Hermione went to stand, but he simply placed his hands upon her shoulder. He started packing items into her charmed bag with care. She lay down and propped her head up using her hands. He moved silently around the room, picking up necessities.

"I really liked this place. It's a shame they found this area." Hermione turned on her side, staring at the back of his head. Severus looked at her in silent agreement and then went back to packing. She could tell he was mourning the loss of his childhood home.

"What's the game plan, boyfriend?" Hermione asked, trying to get him talking. As long as he would talk to her, Hermione would at least have one constant in her destroyed world.

"Head into town, avoid modern day bandits, and find other survivors. How does that sound, girlfriend?" Severus stopped packing and lay down next to the young witch. He moved stray hairs from her face and then caressed her porcelain cheek.

"That goes against the rules of every zombie movie ever made." Hermione smacked him, as if this handbook of unwritten rules should be of common knowledge. He smiled something soft and genuine, kissing her forehead.

"We die here or we die trying." Severus looked into her eyes, as stoic as ever. He placed his nose beside hers, pining for a kiss. It felt like ages since they had shared this small act of romance. He waited for her to move the half inch to him, but she merely bit her lip with a worried look renting her eyes.

"That's what worries me. We die either way." Hermione looked to the ceiling, and Severus stood with a sigh, continuing his packing job. Once they were set, they took off with blunt objects in hand. They weaved through the field that turned to be a dead zone to the North. The couple made their way to town, the suburban area abandoned. Cars, clothes, and trash littered the streets. The town wasn't as beautiful as either of them remembered. They took each other's hands, walking silently through the dead town. In the back, the pair heard rustling and whispering. Severus and Hermione readied themselves for a violent battle, but nothing grotesque arrived.

A little girl no older than ten with big blue eyes and brown hair in a ponytail ran from a bush hugged the legs of Hermione.

A mother, father, and older boy appeared from around the corner, running as fast as they could.

"Chell! You don't run off like that!" The mother fell to her knees, calling the one named Chell over to her.

"But these people are good people. She won't try to eat me," Chell looked up at Hermione ", right?"

"Of course not, sweetie. Not us." Hermione smiled reassuringly at the family. They seemed much calmer now that their baby girl was in the mothers arms.

"I'm Severus, and this is Hermione. You would be who?" Severus spoke politely to the strangers to reassure that they would not hurt them. The father stopped puffing his chest out as much at Severus' soft tone and stood with his hand on the small of his wife's back.

"I'm Jim," the man spoke ", this is my wife Lisa Brampton. Obviously, this is Chell and the older man beside me is our son Scott." The older man, who honestly didn't look any older than twenty six waved with a timid smile, proceeding to push up his glasses. Hermione nodded in a collective greeting while Severus stayed stoic, somewhat skeptical of this family.

"Shall we make it back to our house? It's boarded up and one hundred percent guaranteed safe. We have a bomb shelter as a basement. You all seem like friendly enough people. We survivors have to stick together." Lisa offered, looking to her husband. Hermione took their offer, so happy that her first impression came off as trustworthy. The walk was short and quiet. But once in the safety of the nineteen fifties style bomb shelter that seemed to take up a football field in space, the chat really started to happen. Hermione told their newly found friends of their escape from the private boarding school, and Lisa told them how she came to find Jim. Overall, they group felt like they've never been closer.

Except for Scott, who hardly spoke a word. Actually, he hadn't spoken at all. Hermione sat from her post beside the dungeon bat and over to see the man huddled in the corner over a sketch book upon a black loveseat.

"What are you drawing?" Hermione asked softly. Even using a whispered voice, Scott jumped and looked at her with an appalled expression. She took note of just how hazel his eyes were. She threw her hands up in surrender with a soft chuckle.

"I won't bite, I promise."

Scott smiled, moving over on the loveseat he occupied to make room for Hermione. She sat and pivoted, leaning over a tad to see what he was sketching. It was of a girl who looked very familiar.

"Is that supposed to be me?" Hermione eyed him up with a playful, friendly smirk.

"Do you like it?" Scott mumbled, nearly blowing Hermione down with shock. His voice was so passive and sweet, she swore she got cavities just hearing those four words.

"I love it. You're very good… no, incredible. You're incredible." Hermione watched a smile pop upon his features, and she took another note of how his eyes smiled with him. He was warm, and endearing. Perhaps she had just spent far too long with Severus, who rarely smiled even when she took an hour to list all the things she finds irresistible about him. Someone who was easy to flatter was a welcomed change, for Hermione knew she hadn't quite lost her 'it' factor.

"You can have it." Scott offered, his voice a tad louder than before.

"No, I'd probably end up losing it. Keep it for now, and when this fiasco is over? I'll take it then and frame it." Hermione smiled as Scott offered her his sketchbook to further inspect. She flipped through pages and pages of mind blowing doodles.

"Did you have a job before this all happened? I worked at a department store as a manager for the cashiers. I… uh, well, it sucked the life out of me." Scott opened up to small talk, turning to better have a conversation.

"Well, uh. Not really. Full time student at a private dorm school… no time, you know? So, how old are you?" Hermione sighed, still turning pages.

"I'm twenty four. You?"

"Twenty. I imagined turning twenty to be much better than this. My party consisted of Severus singing to me."

"Well, that's nice."

"He can't sing to save his own life. I never want to endure that ever again!" Hermione and Scott laughed, reaching a comfortable silence. Hermione was finished looking at all the drawings, handing the book back to the boy.

"So, when you went to school, did you major in anything?" Scott placed his book and pencil down.

"Oh, I… well. A little bit of everything, there wasn't anything I was bad at. Except sports. I was never into the school sport… what about you?" Hermione grimaced at the time she tried to play the blasted sport. She nearly fell of her broom to her death is Ron hadn't caught her.

"I was a medical engineer. I have my bachelor's degree. I was intending to go further, but this happened and I lost sight of my future." Scott seemed really torn apart about his schooling effort going to waste. Hermione placed a reassuring hand upon his shoulder.

"When the world rebuilds itself, there will be plenty of jobs for you. Me on the either hand? I planned on becoming an al-," Hermione coughed ", chemist. A scientist… chemist. I've always had a knack with… brewing, so to speak." Scott laughed, seeing a joke within her sentence.

"Dungeon master alchemist? Level one hundred?" He nudged her arm lightly, earning a smile from the girl.

"_You have no idea_." Hermione grumbled. The silence lasted for a while, causing Hermione to take a good look at him.

He was self-conscious and it showed. He wasn't thin, merely a characteristically normal size with a daunting height of five foot ten and she liked that a lot. Hermione craved normality in these troubled times, and his clean cut hair and smooth face gave her exactly that. His shy smile was warm and inviting appose to her boyfriends which was ice, even under the best circumstances.

"Looks like my dad took a liking to your teacher over there." Scott tilted his head, motioning for her to turn and look. Severus was smirking, talking about something that clearly interested him. She shrugged, not minding him staying away from her.

"Boys will be boys. He's been stuck with me for a very long time. I think the male bonding will do him some good. Same with me. I haven't had a conversation with someone my own age in forever," Hermione spotted the deck of cards upon the desk ", hey… want to play?" She picked up the deck with a quick scan through to make sure each card was there. Satisfied with her findings, she shuffled them thoroughly.

Severus spoke with the adults, Scott and Hermione played cards and eventually let Chell play a few rounds of Go Fish. Scott put Chell in her small cot for bed, and they played cards well into the night after everyone else had fallen asleep. Severus had not asked her to come to sleep with him on the couch and Scott eventually couldn't stay awake much longer. He gratefully gave up his loveseat for her to curl up on. Their nights were exceptionally normal.

Insanely normal… uncannily normal.

_Dangerously_ normal.

**So, I'm pushing myself back in the writing game, but don't expect too much XD But I wouldn't be appose to reviews to inspire me ;D hint hint… nudge nudge. **

**xoxo PN**


	5. Supplies

**So, let's learn more about Scott, hmm?**

Hermione woke up with a foreign blue sweater draped over her torso and shoulders. She gave a puzzled look to no one, rubbing her eyes free of their weight. She stretched her back, hearing a satisfying cracking noise. With a fumbling hand, she pulled her hair into a high ponytail that bobbed nearly at the top of her head.

"You were shaking and I heard your teeth clattering, so I put my sweater on you. I hope that's okay." Scott rubbed the back of his head, stretching out for he slept on the floor. She placed a hand on his shoulder, and tilted her head with a weary smile.

"Thank you, but there was no need to sleep on the floor! Come on up and get comfy!" Hermione pulled her knees to her chest and patted the loveseat. Scott hesitated and then pulled himself upon the couch. They sat for a moment, blinking their eyes rapidly trying to free themselves from sleeps tempting grasp.

"Is it morning?" Hermione moved the sweater and pulled it on. She didn't think much of it, and Scott didn't seem to care due to the fact she was wearing a tank top. He would rather her be warm than cold.

"I think so. We have some work to do, though. It's a weekly job type thing. I'm going out to scavenge food and medicine." Scott rubbed his own neck, feeling kinks from the night before start to ache.

"By yourself?" Hermione gasped, and Scott nodded positively to her question. Hermione shook her head, insisting that she went with him. Scott waved his hand and opened his mouth to speak, but she stopped him immediately.

"Back up is vital!" Hermione nodded her head, refusing for him to reject her offer. He simply shrugged his shoulders, accepting to her wants.

"Do you know how to shoot?" Scott motioned her to come upstairs. They walked up a few staircases into the master bedroom lined with fire arms. Hermione's eyes widened. She shook her head, watching Scott twist on an extending piece to a hand gun.

"This is my favorite. Colt .45 with a silencer. They won't be able to hear you. It's the safest way to keep alive out there." he handed her the gun an opened the window.

"I never took you for a gun person." Hermione observed him once more with a thorough look up and down. She couldn't see a single shred of violent in him. He laughed softly, looking away from her. Scott pushed up his glasses and gave her a warm glance.

"I'm not. I had no choice but to learn when they started to walk. Now come on, I'll teach you how to fire." Hermione stood in front of the window, and Scott stood behind her. Her took her hands and held them out straight.

"Alright, it's cocked and locked. All you need to do is pull the trigger. Aim and pull..." Scott whispered. Hermione took note of how his accent was American, not English. Hermione took a breath, aiming carefully and pulled. They heard a thud from the silencer, and watched a corpse fall and stay down.

"You're a good shot. Quite a natural. Perhaps it's a good thing you'll be tagging along." Scott laughed, hands still on hers. Hermione chuckled softly, looking down and Scott's hands began to fidget. He coughed, sliding his hands up her arms innocently.

"Uhm, let me pack a bag and we can get out there... uhm. Okay." Scott backed up, grabbing clips and more silencers for back up. With a couple of water bottles, they said their good byes. The mother and father thanked Hermione graciously for being able to talk their son into having a partner and Chell begged them to come back safe. But Hermione was more focused on the very sleepy man she called her own. She tip toed over to him, his lips pursed and eyes slowly blinking open.

"Severus?" Hermione sat beside her man's sleeping form. He opened his onyx eyes in a flash, a content smile over coming him. There was nothing more he loved than waking up to her beautiful eyes… but he would never tell her.

"Scott and I are going out to get supplies... I'll be back soon, love." She whispered into his ear. He nodded, rubbing his finger against her hand. Hermione leaned down for a kiss, yet Severus turned away and closed his eyes. He was asleep in an instant. Hermione was hurt deeply, but felt warmth from Scott when he smiled at her. His smile fell, and she couldn't tell why. Scott looked to her hand entangled in Severus' then to the floor.

"Ready to go?" Scott coughed, rubbing the back of his head. Hermione sighed and nodded. She followed the tall man out the door. It was empty on the street.

"We have another two hours of this dead level. The later in the day, the more show up. Let's keep it fast." He handed her a silenced Colt .45. The pair walked down the street to a long line of markets.

"So, you and Severus… huh?" Scott asked nonchalantly. Hermione giggled softly.

"Yeah, I know he's old. But he matches my intellect. He's the… uh, chemistry teacher and I am his best student. It just sort of happened after the outbreak. Do you have a partner?" Hermione tucked some stray hairs behind her ear and kept up with Scott's naturally fast pace.

"Nope." Scott kept it short. Hermione took that as a hint to move on from that subject. Scott led them into a very abandon looking grocery store. Guns up, they crept silently amongst the isles.

"We're clear. But don't put that away... So," Scott turned to look at Hermione once he was sure the store was safe ", I noticed he avoided kissing you this morning."

"Did you see that? Yeah... we haven't been as strong as we could be. I guess we rushed into what we have, but I don't regret it. We're solid… no fights or anything… really. Okay, some fighting." Hermione shrugged her shoulders, looking for vegetables.

"Rushed? Fighting?" he prodded, but in a passive sense. She didn't even take notice of his shifting eyes.

"Yeah. We really just jumped in head first. He is a very bold individual and the most loyal. It took him awhile to be bold, but he's here now. Severus is pretty sarcastic too. But I suppose I like them shy, he's out of my usual norm. I've never dated really… I suppose that's why we fight a lot… because we've never really dated. I'm a know it all and he has this problem when someone's smarter than him. Like an intelligence complex." Hermione started to spill. She hadn't been able to speak to anyone about her relationship. It felt incredible to let it out.

"He has a lot of age on me, but he also has a mean streak. Sometimes I wonder if I'm the mature one with the way he pouts. He has more experience when it comes to feeling strong love. He only loved one girl before me. But... I don't think he's gotten over her… another reason for our fights. I feel like he is settling for me. He just hasn't kissed me or touched me in so long." Hermione grabbed some fresh produce and tossed it into her messenger bag with a forceful toss. She turned, bumping chests with Scott as he spoke.

"He hasn't touched you-OHF!"

"Yeah. Not sexually and not... like this." she gestured to their torsos that grazed each other. His towering height made his downward gaze to her nearly enchanting. Hermione sensed Scott's socially awkward nature from the way he breathed. She smiled, placing her chin against his chest.

"I like contact like this. He just never gives it to me." Hermione seemed puzzled, and quite unaware that she had a flirtatious attitude. Scott didn't notice, for he could never pick up on flirting anyway. Yet, something compelled him to move that damn stray piece of hair she's been pushing behind her ear back to its rightful position.

Hermione was suddenly torn. What was happening to her? The good girl who never set her eyes on anyone had a boyfriend, and saw something shining within this boy in front of her. Hermione told herself it was because she found a friend in Scott but that was because she couldn't admit the truth.

"_I love Severus… I love Severus…"_ Her conscious echoed through the darkest caverns of her mind. Her palms started to sweat and she started to shake. She had to get away from Scott at all costs, but Hermione felt glued to him. She was petrified as Scott placed a twitching, questioning hand on her cheek. Well, it could _hardly_ be called placing. Hermione caught the heat from his hand move over her cheek, but not actually make physical contact.

"_Oh god, what is this?"_ Hermione screamed within her mind, unsure of that giddy feeling spreading straight to her fingertips. Is this what a crush felt like? Why did she feel more comfortable – more at home – in the arms of a stranger than her own boyfriend's? Why did she enjoy being this close to this stranger rather than being close to her boyfriend? She felt repulsed, yet forced attraction like a magnet to this tall geeky man before her.

"_Hnggg_…"

Hermione looked at Scott's mouth. He certainly hadn't made the noise and she knew she didn't make the noise. Hermione watched Scott calm the Colt .45 with the strip of skateboarding tap on the side, placing a hand over her mouth so she wouldn't make a single sound.

**Building a rapport with Scott? Fun stuff ;D I hope you like him as much as I… well, Hermione does XD**

**xoxoPN**


	6. Video Games

**Getting an xBox 360 for Christmas has destroyed me. Writing time = XBOX TIME**

"Wow… that was exciting." Hermione gasped for air, trying to still her shaking form from the wave attack of the dead. The man held her shoulder, hoping the contact would give her a sense of stability. After a moment of silence, the pair went carefully on their mission. They gathered what they could and snuck their way back to the home. Once inside, Hermione collapsed beside Severus, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"Hoards of them." She spoke softly, snuggling into his shoulder. Severus was surprised by her almost… _guilty_ actions as she grasped his large hand. He wrapped his arms around her and held her, despite the odd looks from the family and the broken look from a pair of piercing brown eyes with hints of gold that Hermione would never admit to finding more than attractive. He entangled his fingers in her hair, offering comfort.

"Hush now, my love." He whispered softly to her, squeezing her hand. A few moments passed, then each individual went on about their daily business. Chell was colouring, the parents were cuddling, and Scott played an abstract video game to Hermione. She never really had time for games, or any electronic device. With a kiss on the forehead from Severus and watching him devour a piece of literature he had yet to get his hands on, Hermione sat with Scott in his corner of the sanctuary.

"What are you playing?" Hermione shivered. Why was it colder in this corner of the shelter? Scott didn't even offer a glance, tossing the blue sweater to her. He wasn't pleased, but he simply couldn't find it in his heart to say no to her.

"A good game with a really good story." Scott shrugged, offering her a sideways glance. He saved his game, and set the controller down. Hermione smelt the sleeves of the sweater for a moment before tucking her knees to her chest.

"A really good story? I like stories. Can you tell me the story?" Her eyes lightened at the mere word story, and Scott was suckered into telling her the long tale of the video game.

"So it's set in the future but everyone is living this nineteen sixties lifestyle. The clothes and lingo are old, but there are robots and really intense weaponry. Anyway, you mother dies while giving birth to you and your dad is all you have. You can tell that he loves you so much it hurts. Well, in this world everyone decided to blow each other's country to pieces using nukes. So you live in a vault to protect you from the wasteland called Vault 101, which leads you to believe there are other vaults. It's like a cult; you are born in the vault, you die in the vault. Anyways when you turn nineteen, dad leaves the vault leaving you a note saying he doesn't want you to know where he is."

"That's so sad." Hermione clutched at her chest and pouted her eyes.

"Well, you leave the vault too. You go into this place called the Capitol Wasteland which is full of mutant mole rats all the way up to super mutant behemoths. There are raiders and slavers to and they're all trying to kill you, the Vault Dwelling Lone Wanderer who is trying to find Daddy Dearest. From that point on you make your own destiny. You can go after dad or you can forget he exists. You can do good deeds and have good karma or do bad things and have bad karma. You can be a temptress, scientist, doctor, brute, or an angel."

"So have you found dad? What's the end of the story for you?" Hermione looked at his lips, awaiting the answer she was suddenly twisting inside to know.

"How about we start you on your own file and you can make your own story? I'll help you." Scott moved Hermione so her back was against his stomach. He held her hands while she held the controller and helped her set up a character with a pink 'Wendy the Welder' bun and bright hazel eyes. The story went on and it made Scott's heart flutter how emotionally attached she became to the pixilated father on the screen. He could tell that she had a natural compassion, love, and adoration for everything by the way she dreamily battered her eyes at the screen.

It reached the end of the long list of unskipable cut scenes to where the dad has a beard and greying hair.

"It's so okay for me to have a crush on a computer character, right?" Hermione giggled, a dopey grin upon her face. She looked at Scott who regarded her with a look of something foreign. Had she made a verbal faux pas? She was concerned until he smiled and gripped her hands tighter. Hermione hadn't noticed that his hands were still on hers twenty minutes into gameplay and past a tutorial. She looked over to Severus who was sleeping once more, book open about midway upon his face.

"I have never heard a more nerdy statement from any girl in my entire life. Marry me?" Hermione laughed, leaning back onto the warm spot against him.

Hermione never really caught on that Scott wasn't actually joking.

**The game is Fallout 3. I cried hard at a lot of points in this game. Especially with my daddy XD**

**xoxoPN**


	7. On The Run

**New term starts tomorrow, but it is literally all art courses XD So I might just be inspired to write more ;)**

"Look…" Hermione whispered in the dead of night, gripping Scott's shoulder. She pointed her finger towards the video surveillance monitors within the panic room. Scott pushed up his glasses and leaned forward, typing some codes into the computer to get different angles.

"It's like they know…" He whispered at just a low rate, turning to greet her eyes.

The dead were slowly starting to come. Not to many, like a hoard. Perhaps five tonight… but what did that mean for tomorrow? Would five turn into ten? Ten turn into twenty? They would keep coming, and the pair sitting in the glow of the computer screens knew it. They sat in silence, weighing their options slowly.

"Wake up your dad and mom. I'll get Severus. Maybe we can take them out using those guns with the silencers." Hermione stood, walking over to her very peaceful boyfriend. She tapped his shoulders and watched him slowly open his eyes.

"They're coming. You need to come help shoot." Hermione took the tired man's hand and stood next to Scott. His father was awakening and they were ready to get rid of zombies shambling to the house. He stood at the news, making a dash upstairs to the master bedroom. He gave Severus a quick overview on how to shoot and sent him to a window and gave his wife a baseball bat because she was the self-labeled queen of melee weaponry. Before Severus could lay a finger on the trigger, Jim was shooting with deadly precision and efficiency.

"What did your dad do before this?" Hermione looked over to Scott as they stood and watched Jim slaughter each zombie that had the idea to walk near their house and his wife who was getting head shots with every swing.

"Pilot for the American Army." Scott raised an eyebrow as he regarded her staring at his father.

"Convenient." Severus coughed, tilting his head ever so lightly.

"More of them are starting to come. We might have to pack up and move on. Scott, go get your mother." Scott ran downstairs to grab Lisa with a rush.

Hermione looked to Severus with worried eyes. They went down into the shelter, to find Chell still sound asleep. Her heart swelled at the innocence of her, and didn't have the heart to wake her up. As Jim began to pack, they heard a piercing call from Scott.

"I'll go, keep packing!" Hermione called, taking a Colt .45 and jogging up the stairs. She opened the door to see Scott on his knees in front of his mother. She held her head in his lap, stroking her blood strewn face.

"Mom…" Tears fell from beyond his glasses as he bent down. Hermione knelt beside him, holding his shoulders with a soft grip.

"Was she bitten?" Hermione used her sleeve to wipe the blood spatters off her face.

"No, one of Dad's bullets hit her through the shoulder. She's unconscious but still breathing. She's going to die and there isn't a single thing I can do." Scott wept, holding his mother close.

Hermione was at a crossroads. She could fix it… she _should_ fix it. In five seconds flat, she could be out of pain and fully conscious but was the repercussions of doing so worth it? Her hand itched to pull out her wand concealed under her yellow dress in her thigh holster. Her eyebrows upturned and it was like her world was in slow motion. The decision to save this beautiful, kind woman upon the ground may jeopardize her position as a witch in the world.

"Scott, if I do something right now, you are not allowed to scream. Or freak out." Hermione didn't even look at him, just staring at Lisa. Scott was puzzled, stammering to get a word out.

"Yeah, sure. Will it save my mom?" He gasped through his sentence, tears still flooding him. Hermione hiked up the sun dress on the right side, pulling the wand out and placing it to the wound.

"I haven't used this one in a very long time. _Wingardium Leviosa_." Hermione lifted the bullet out of the wound, causing more blood to spurt out. Hermione cracked her neck, preparing for a very strenuous spell.

"_Vulnera Sanentur_…" Hermione ran her wand over the bullet wound for a solid five minutes, a bead of sweat forming as she healed the gapping wound. Scott stared in shock, watching the spilled blood return to the body of his mother. The colour was coming back to her face and her eyes were twitching to open. She pulled her wand away and allowed Lisa to come to.

"Lisa, get up. Zombies are starting to flood your home. You need to go wake up Chell and pack. Go!" Lisa shook her head and rotated her shoulder as if nothing happened. Hermione felt a hand over her wrist before she had a chance to stand.

"What was that?" Scott's eyebrows were upturned and his mouth was hung open. She took his face within her hands for a moment, trying to find the words to explain her story.

"The private school was a private school for magic. I'm a witch and my teacher slash boyfriend is the potions master and Defense Against the Dark Arts genius. It's supposed to be a secret from muggles, but I thought since the world was ending? It might be okay. Uh… muggles are non-magic folk. Nothing offensive, I swear!" Hermione gulped, prepared for the worst. Scott was going to think she was a freak. He was probably going to shoot her in the knee for being such an abomination.

"You saved my mother instead of keeping it a secret like you're supposed to?" Scott tilted his head, breathing more uneven.

"Yeah. We need to go inside to pack, I'll explain more later." She took his hands to stand, but he wouldn't budge from the place on his knees. Hermione tugged with more force, but he still wouldn't move. Hermione gave a rough sigh, ready to _Imperio_ the boy right back inside but she was stopped. Scott pulled her down to his level, flipping her on her back and suspending her above the damp ground. He placed his lips to hers, the sexual tension of the pair that was growing since they met finally exploding into a kiss. Hermione tasted his inexperience, and she found herself smiling at it. She pushed away, causing a pained look to appear within the boy's eyes.

"This is really great, but they're coming and we need to move. Come on." Hermione pushed herself up, grabbing Scott's hand and dragging him in the house. The family was desperately packing. Everything Severus and her needed was already within her charmed bag. Jim and Lisa packed for themselves, Severus willingly helped Chell, and Hermione helped Scott.

"We can't pack to heavy but we have a lot of weaponry to bring. I'm not sure how we'll haul it all around." Scott grabbed his clothing bag and had Hermione follow him up to the makeshift armory.

"I can charm a bag so you can fit everything. Give me a bag." She snatched the black gun holder from Scott's hands, tapping and waving her wand for a moment. She unzipped the bag and started to toss guns, silences, and ammunition inside. Scott was in awe, seeing as over half the weaponry had been tossed into the bag and it was looking next to empty. He started to put all the ammo and silencers upon the bed, making it easier on Hermione who couldn't quite find all the hidden items.

"We decided it would be best to hide some stuff in case we got raided." Scott huffed, tossing a couple of 10mm rounds upon the bed from a safe behind a gun rack.

"Oh, good idea." Hermione spoke absent mindedly, trying to focus on the task at hand. The group rendezvous on the middle floor in front of the door. Severus had 2 bags slung over his shoulder; Hermione's and his, and Chell's. Scott was carrying his own and Jim and Lisa had their own as well.

"My plane is just a few miles from here. If we can get there, we can fly to somewhere safe. I'm not sure where, but somewhere safe. We'll see if the radios are up. Everyone locked and loaded?" Jim nodded affirmatively at his own plan. Everyone held up a gun, even Severus had an assault rifle strapped to his back. Hermione recalled him saying something about shooting old tin cans when he was a child and not allowed to mess with magic. Hermione picked Chell into her arms for the convenience of her parents. If she carried her everywhere, Chell was less likely to fall, or be slow and get left behind.

With a countdown, the group was out the door and in the van. Lisa messed with the radio, finding a station that wasn't ordinary.

"Look alive, sunshine. This is Doctor Death Defying coming to y'all live from Zom-Free Radio! During the apocalypse, I am you're only true friend. So ladies and gentleman I hear that Los Angeles has it pretty good right now. Minimal zombified activity and less dusting per square inch. But ya know them stories and movies. If someone reports it to be safe, it's probably the most dangerous there. Now some tunes to settle those adrenalin nerves of yours." The group took a collective moment to think.

"We have to try." Hermione interjected through the silence, looking down at Chell who was drifting back to sleep even in all the chaos.

"Or we die trying." Severus held her hand, looking down into his lap.

"It's settled. LA or bust." Jim pulled out of the driveway, driving down the dead street. Doors were opened and windows were broken. Blood and corpses occupied the sidewalks. Papers and trash as well. There was a certain calm to the night, no dead in eyes range. It was eerie, and the fear in the air could have been cut with a butter knife. The unnerving silence was cut through as the man on the radio managed to get the music flowing.

"_I don't want to set the world on fire._

_I just want to start a flame in your heart._

_In my heart I have but one desire._

_And that one is you… no other will do_."

As Hermione looked out the side window, she took a note of how the music fit with the destroya outside the security of the van. It was like a tango between calm and frightening. There was no other word to describe it than_ romantic_.

**See you all soon.**

**PS: Those who get the Doctor Death Defying reference and where it's from without google is a fuckign boss.**

**xoxoPN**


	8. Out Of The Bag

The road and loading onto the plane was surprisingly easy. Hardly any zombies were around, and there were tanks upon tanks of gas. Clearly cars were everyone's travel of choice. After clearing the plane to ensure it was safe of all dead and possible repairs needed to be done, Jim had everyone on the plane and took off within ten minutes flat. Lisa and Chell fell asleep in the back, Severus was being taught how to co-pilot, and Hermione and Scott sat within the first class cabin.

"So, you're a witch? That's so cool. I'm envious." Scott brushed the stray hairs behind Hermione's ear, leaning almost uncomfortably close to her.

"Yeah. I'm so glad I can actually tell someone other than my friends. All my friends were magic anyway… they're all dead now. I wouldn't be surprised if Severus and I were the only ones left." Hermione wondered of other magic school, specifically of Krum. Perhaps, with his strength, he had survived it all. Maybe she would find him someday and compare notes.

"Why not? Can't you just use magic against them?"

"That's the terrifying thing," Hermione looked down to her wand within her hands ",it doesn't work on them. We tried numerous spells. We made a potion that worked, but we ran out of ingredients for it."

"So, what about magic folk in general? How will you survive as a race?"

"I don't know. If Severus and I get married and have a child? We're sure to have a pure blood child. If we split and I have a child with a muggle, it's a fifty-fifty shot… I suppose. When we left, I took a lot of supplies from Severus' stores… he doesn't know. My muggle partner could drink the potion I brew to ensure a wizard or witch baby. I've never tried it, but I could probably turn a muggle into a wizard with a strong enough potion." Hermione yawned, head hurting from the sudden rush of excitement.

"When who left? Just you and Severus?" Hermione opened her mouth to answer him, but didn't quite know how to explain her story.

"It started with a big group. My friend, Ron… who I sorta liked at the time was already infected with the virus when people started to turn. He had a scratch. He went first. Then his sister, Ginny… beautiful girl, went after his body and got eaten. Then my best friend, Harry Potter. Harry freakin' Potter." Hermione started to laugh, remembering their lives together. All the battles, all the bloodshed. They had stuck through it together for years and a zombie infestation, small in comparison to Voldemort, tore them apart. It was painfully ironic.

"Harry Potter?"

"Harry Potter is a completely different story on his own, and I just happened to get wrapped up in that beautiful chaos. I wouldn't change a thing. It's a long story."

"I have time, Hermione." Scott kissed her forehead.

"I don't think you understand the gargantuan story line that is Harry Potter. No really, it's a REALLY long story. If someone were to write it all down it would take up at least… seven books. Or eight movies."

"Alright. If we make it out alive, tell me the story. So more, who got out?"

"Well, Harry kicked it nobly. Then my eccentric friend Luna went with curiosity. Severus, my favorite teacher McGonagall, and I ran for it. McGonagall died on the way out with her head up high. It's been me and Severus ever since."

"Wow… that must have been really hard." Scott wrapped his arms around her, moonlight offering the perfect ambiance. Hermione nodded, but then smiled warmly. Scott leaned in, but a light finger against his chin stopped Scott's lips from connecting.

"I'm with Severus." Hermione stared at his beautiful eyes, then to his lips.

"He doesn't touch you like this," Scott brushed the side of her face with his lips but didn't kiss it ", or make you feel special like this." Scott kissed her eyelids and the tip of her nose. Hermione's breath hitched. She was never a cheater, and she would never be. Hermione leaned back, Severus walking through the isle. He took a step over, kissing Hermione quickly for no particular reason.

"I'm going to go nap, want to come snuggle for a bit, love?" Severus tilted his head, awaiting an answer.

"Yes, yes, yes." Hermione breathed almost uncertainly. Scott looked down as she took Severus' hand and slunk off to the back. Severus awoke Lisa and told her it was her shift to go in and help her husband. She smiled, telling them to take a good nap. Chell ended up waking up and going to the first class to sleep beside her brother.

"So," Severus growled ", Scott."

"Yeah." Hermione sat upon her elbow, staring into his black eyes. He grabbed her shoulders with much more force than needed, eyes pleading.

"What am I not giving you, Hermione?" His eyes began to water, and Hermione grabbed his face. She had hurt him, and it was hurting her.

"You're giving me everything…"

"Stop lying. I see how he looks at you. How you look at him. Am I not giving you enough love? Attention? What do you need from me? I'll give it to you." Severus began kissing down her neck and shoulders, hands tugging at the hem of her shirt.

"Severus, love. Stop that. I need love and attention. You've hardly kissed me the past few weeks…" Hermione trailed off as Severus kissed her stomach. Nibbling on her milk white skin, he made small growling noises as he struggled with her belt.

"Severus, stop…" Hermione pushed his head away from her, his face red with blood flowing through his cheeks. He took her hands into his own, kissing her stomach once more.

"Do you want to break up?"

"I don't know…"

"I won't let you die out there, no matter how bitter I seem." Hermione hesitated and Severus let his gaze drift to the wall of the plane.

"If you have to hesitate, I know the answer. Go on… go to him." Severus rolled on his side, facing away from the broken teen beside him. She stood, taking a slow walk back to first class. Chell had gone into the cockpit and Scott was alone. By the expression Hermione held, Scott knew what had happened. He opened his arms to her as she fell within them, crying for an hour or so. He made no moves to kiss her, and Hermione liked it that way. Scott held her hand, and that's as far as he would go.


	9. Lisa

**Long Authors Note Ahead:**

**Alright, so for those of you who got my Fallout reference a few chapters back and like the game, read my Fallout 3 fanfic "My Love, My Darling, My Hope". It's Female Lone Wanderer and James, because some daddy/daughter closure is always nice :3 It's family based and whatnot. Now onto Viral.**

**Since writing the first chapter of Viral and seeing how many people liked it, I knew I was going to write a sequel and I knew how I wanted that sequel to end. I'm telling you now, some of you are probably going to hate my writing, hate on me, insult me, and probably never read my work again. But I beg you to see the artistic vision of the romance of the ending.**

**But we don't have to worry about this story ending, we have a long way to go.**

"Wake up. We've landed." Severus' voice pierced Hermione into consciousness, rubbing her eyes. She rubbed her neck, sore from the awkward position it was in as she rested upon Scott's shoulder. She yawned, smacking Scott lightly. He grumbled, opening his eyes and cleaning his glasses against his shirt. He regarded Hermione, kissing her forehead and held her as he worked the ability to be awake and stand.

"Morning, Hermione." Scott kissed her forehead once more, brushing his hands upon her cheeks. Hermione's eyes were still slightly red and swollen from the night before. She smiled in response, stretching her back. Scott stood, grabbing her hands and helping her up. They grabbed their bags and weapons, moving their way out to the landing strip. There the family stood, looking across the Post Apocolyptia Los Angeles had become.

"Let's split and look for cars. Take these." Lisa handed out walkie-talkies, heading with her husband and Chell in her arms. Severus went on his own, leaving Scott and Hermione to look at each other. Hermione rifled around the weapon bag for a moment, settling on a hunting rifle. They trekked around the wastes, looking for cars. None of them worked. The group got together again, deciding on walking to be their best bet.

"It's good to be back." Jim sighed in a bitter laugh, walking down to the main road of the airport.

"You lived here?" Hermione smiled softly, looking up at Jim.

"Yeah, before I got transferred, LA was our home." His nostalgic thoughts brought a huge smile to his face as they walked down the empty road. Severus had taken Chell into his arms for Lisa, who desperately needed a rest. They walked until the sun was high in the sky, beating down upon their flesh. Hermione just knew she was going to be burned by the end of this day.

"Reminds me of _Fallout _three." Scott smirked, looking to the girl beside him. She smiled, having taken far too much time playing that game within the shelter.

"I'd much rather be looking for my father than roaming aimlessly within a foreign country. At least you kill other people in defense during that game instead of flesh eating zombies."

"Feral ghouls. Get it right." Scott elbowed her, chuckling as she nearly lost balance. Hermione's flats lightly tapped against the ground, bouncing off the houses and stores that remained standing. The entire area had been looted and destroyed, burning in the panic. Yet, for the remains, it was deathly quiet. It made Hermione uneasy, the silence that sat thick within the dusty air of America.

"Let's just find a store that has most of its windows. How about a pub?" Severus interjected, stroking the hair of a sleeping Chell within his arms.

"Right, well we're downtown. We should be able to find a bar." Jim coughed, looking town the streets for the building in question. The family was flying blind, and had no idea as to the general lay out of this city, or even the country to Hermione and Severus.

"So, Hermione, did you study American History when you went to school?" Lisa asked, tilting her head with curiosity. Hermione laughed, scratching the back of her head.

"Oh, no. I was planning on becoming a scientist so American History wasn't a class I needed." Hermione did take history, however. It was simply the History of Magic, not American. As they looked around town, one by one, zombies began to emerge from the wreckage. They started to get nervous, readying their weapons for combat. As they started to get closer, Hermione felt Chell graze past her legs.

"Chell, no!" Severus fell to his knees in attempts to grab her ankle or clothes. Anything to get her to stay put. Lisa made a mad dash to grab her baby girl, Hermione hot on her trail to cover her from the roaming dead's hands. Despite her decent head shots, as Lisa grabbed Chell, a zombie bit deeply into the mother's neck. Lisa fell to her knees, handing off Chell to Hermione. With a grunt and a hand motion, the young girl retreated. Scott and Jim took out the remaining walkers. Severus took Chell back, cooing some incoherent promises of a bright future. Jim fell to his knees by his wife's side, crying.

"Go to the bar. Use your… you know. Open the door if it's locked and get inside with Chell. Scott will follow you and cover. I'll stay here and wait for Jim. He knows what he must do." Hermione looked at the ground, pushing the boys towards the building. They did as told, and Hermione stood behind Jim with a loving hand upon his shoulder.

"Just remember that I will always love Chell, and I will always love you." Lisa spoke her final words in an erratic breath, eyes shutting in a peaceful motion in the thick silence of Los Angeles. Jim took a breath, placing the barrel to her head and unloading a single bullet directly into her brain. He stood, silent tears falling down his face without shame. Hermione opened her arms for the man, allowing him to hug her.

"She meant it." Jim wept, holding Hermione tighter.

"I know she meant it. I could feel it." Hermione held the man, nothing but love spurting for his wounds upon his heart.

"You're like the daughter I always want Chell to grow to be. You're my family now, Hermione. My late coming daughter." He sniffled, wiping all remains of his tears and ready to be strong for his baby girl. Hermione smiled at him, proud to see the man she had grown to care for accepting her spot within his life in such a grim time. Jim was right. The people she had met, even Lisa who had fallen, would always be a part of her now.

She took Jim's hand, helping him inside. He immediately scooped his daughter into his arms and broke the news to her in the only way he knew how. Chell didn't understand, and perhaps that was for the best. Hermione took a breath, feeling a patting upon her back. She looked to find Severus gripping her shoulder, avoiding her gaze. She patted his large hand, leaving to be alone at the booth in the corner of the dark bar. She observed how Chell made her dad smile in the darkest of times, how Severus stirred drinks for Jim, and how Scott made a slow walk towards her. Scott sat beside her, wrapping her in an embrace. He didn't even seem to be too broken over his mother's death, but she supposed that's what the apocalypse did to an individual.

"You okay, Hermione?"

"I should be asking you the same question. You just lost your mother."

"I love her so much. But I was prepared for this day once the infection broke out. It hurts, it always will. But I have my father and sister to worry about more than anyone. Especially myself and my emotional pain. Try not to think about the past. It'll just eat you alive, Hermione and you look so much prettier when you smile. Come on, I have something that will cheer you up." Hermione smirked, looking up to meet Scott's eyes. He captured her lips in a quick kiss and then traced his lips down her cheek to her neck. The scruff growing upon his face irritated her skin, reminding her of how smooth Severus' face always way. Perhaps it was a spell he used or maybe it was natural, but his skin was flawless… always. Yet his attention left her glowing and stifling soft moans as he nibbled in all the right spots. Severus had long stopped giving her this attention when they were together. She practically had to beg for it.

"Scott, stop. Your dad can see us." Hermione whispered, peeling Scott off of her. He whimpered, kissing her neck once more. He simply held her and that was good enough for the both of them. Scott had shut his eyes, sleeping upon her shoulder while the other three of her group had fallen victim to rest. Hermione sighed to herself within the dark, shutting her eyes.

"One down, five to go."

A restless sleep then found her.

**I want to say a maximum of five chapters to go, but it may go longer. I just don't want this story to turn into one of those uncontrollable monsters that grow too big.**

**xoxoPN**


	10. Suicide Is Painless

**OH NO GAIS. SOME ANON POSTED A REVIEW ON VIRAL SAYING I'M A TERRIBLE WRITER AND THAT I SHOULD QUIT! IMA GO KILL MAHSELF NAO OVER DIS MEAN GUYS WORDS EVEN THO I HAVE NO IDEA WHO THEY ARE AND APPERENTLY THEY THINK MY WRITING SUCKS.**

**Fuck that. I'm going to keep writing, terrible or not, just to piss this person off. No really, some fucker tells you you're a bad writer? Keep writing, get famous, get a best-selling book. Then hunt this individual down, tie them in your basement, and shove the pieces of paper from your best-selling book down their throat and laugh as the paper cuts in his body make him drown in his own blood.**

**Then write about their hilarious death and piss on their grave.**

**But you may not all be as petty as I ;) Back to my terrible writing, shall we?**

Hermione's feet dangled over the edge of the bar rooftop, shoes left behind as to save them a plummet to the dead below. The sun was setting, sky the color of fire, and it was dead silent in Destroya. She ran her dry tongue over her equally dry lips, feeling the dead skin flake. She fiddled with the hem of Scott's large sweater, gazing longingly to the cement below which was covered in Lisa's blood. Hermione pondered for a brief moment, the three story drop looking much more deadly from her angle than it actually was.

One perfectly angled jump.

She knew if she fell just right, upon her head, she could reach the checkpoint of the end. Hermione crossed her legs over the knee, pressing her cold toes to her warm calf. The thought became more sinister with each passing moment. One swan dive and she could be out of the hell she was forced to live. She pulled her greasy hair into a loose braid using an elastic band, proceeding to slap her feet against the brick.

One perfectly angled jump.

Hermione recalled of the days when she had plans, dreams, and hopes. She would become a teacher at Hogwarts, majoring it all the subjects, if she could help it. She would marry Ron and have beautiful children with her beautiful man and live in a beautiful home. She would make dinner parties with her beautiful friends and spend time in the beautiful life she hoped to create for herself. Then the shit hit the fan, zombies crawling amongst the hallow halls of the beautiful ancient school. Hermione was forced away from the one true place she felt at home, away from the only people she found to be as beautiful as her future.

One perfectly angled jump.

Once the virus had unleashed, it had all happened fast. A petty crush upon Severus Snape grew in their vulnerable situation. Hermione then planned on surviving, marrying beautiful Severus, and having beautiful long conversation. They would drink their cherry tea, reading literature and spending their dates in second hand book stores with walls of muggle books. Severus, ever an honest man, would never betray their love and that security is all she ever wanted. Then even that went to hell.

One perfectly angled jump.

Scott was so pretty, so normal. So _eventual_. She gave into her mind, for Scott was the easy route. Her heart may not be there just yet, but she swore to give it time. She would come around to the smart muggle man, normality consuming her far too extraordinary life. Hermione would survive, marry Scott, have – hopefully – muggle children, find a friend in Severus and enjoy life when this blows over. It was all so ideal, so eventual. Yet surviving left a bitter taste in Hermione's mouth now.

Yes... one perfectly angled jump.

Hermione stood on the edge, rocks digging into her feet. She spread her arms, a baby bird ready to fly away from the nest and test its ability to do what it was born today. Flexing her fingers, the warm air passing through the spaces, her eyelids started to droop, more tired than anything. She hadn't slept for hours, since the plane, and after watching Lisa get shot and bitten, she was one of the more exhausted. One could only take so much hurt in a twenty hour period.

Hermione almost smiled for a painfully short moment as she pondered that perfectly angled jump, never really thinking of herself of a suicide type of individual. She defeated every one of Snape's pop quizzes, slayed every overgrown mutt and spider to walk the Earth. She had fought dementors and destroyed all those who stood in her path to intellectual greatness. But zombies? No, they would be her undoing and push her over the edge. More literally than anyone would see. No, they wouldn't see it coming until she made impact with the pavement.

One god damn perfectly angled jump.

No... suicide is a cowards way out. Yet, if it was the only thing Hermione had learned thus far, it was that heroic deaths were much more painful. At least if she hit the ground on her head, she would be paralyzed for when the zombies ripped her to pieces. Hermione wouldn't feel every single tooth digging into her flesh in a blaze of glory.

One fucking perfectly angled jump.

She inched forward, toes flexing over the edge. One slip and she would be with her parents... with her friends once more. Hermione could have cared less what the fellow bar inhabitants thought of her. She couldn't care. She would be dead. It was becoming more appealing by the second, the pavement beckoning for her to be careless for once in her life and end it all. Hermione tried to convince herself she would be doing the world a service. So many people had tried to kill themselves before her, she would be succeeding, ending one useless, miserable life so that her family in the bar below wouldn't have to worry.

One perfectly timed… perfectly angled jump.

Severus probably wouldn't miss her at all. In fact, he probably wished her dead. Scott would miss her a little, Hermione supposed. Jim would probably miss her… and Chell adored her. Chell probably couldn't stand losing two females in her life at once. Hermione also remembered that she would be Chell's only female influence through this entire crazy mess. She looked to the ground, zombies stumbling through the broken glass and ash. She let the breath she didn't know she was holding escape past her lips. Hermione stepped off the ledge, slipping her shoes back on.

She walked back to the door leading into the bar but stopped to turn at the ledge. Hermione swallowed, running towards the ledge. She placed one foot on the ledge as if to catapult herself to the ground, but stopped herself again. Hermione did a few blinks, surprising herself of the lack of fear she had of dying, the lack of regret she knew she would have felt is she jumped. Hermione hung her head low, braid itching at her back as she walked down the stairwell into the bar.

The one perfectly angled jump could wait one day more.

**xoxoPN**


	11. The Curse Of Killing

**I had to put my cat down on Tuesday. So, I've decided that living in a zombie invested world is significantly better than this reality.**

**Sorry if this chapter sucks.**

It had been three days since Hermione's roof experience, suicide still an option resting in the back of her mind. It had been two days and eighteen hours since Scott and Hermione shared a passion filled kiss and a sticky fumbling in the bar bathroom with haste. Two days and fourteen hours since Severus shot her a scolding look for the deed she had done, for he had heard it when he walked by the women's bathroom.

Two days ago at dawn, she had woken up to Scott weeping and clutching to one of Chell's toy teddy bears. Jim and Chell had gone, being courteous enough to leave the door open behind them. They were lucky; the dead had vacated the area in the hours of the morning probably off chasing the father daughter duo.

One day and twenty three hours ago, Severus remembered a sealing charm that may work to keep the dead away.

One day and thirteen hours ago, the walkers had breached the charm.

One day, thirteen hours, and forty-five minutes ago, the silver trio hastily grabbed for the weaponry bag and sealed themselves on the roof. One day, thirteen hours, and forty minutes ago Hermione called for a carpet, no longer needing to hide magic from Chell or Jim. One day, thirteen hours, and thirty minutes ago they were sailing over the city of LA, wondering how they managed to come this far in a land where the dead walk the Earth.

"I want to try something…" Hermione rasped, voice dry and scratchy within her throat. She fondled her wand, tipping over the edge of the carpet and bringing it down just out of reach of the dead. Hermione waved her wand violently, green light shooting out and hitting a patch of the dead. They all immediately dropped, ceasing to stand up again.

"How could I not have guessed-" Severus wanted to rip his own skin apart for being so stupid and oblivious to the most obvious answer in the magical world.

"The killing curse, we didn't think of it because it is forbidden in the first place. Why think of something we're not trained to use?"

"It works, the curse you told me about? It kills them?" Scott awed, gaping at the dead bleeding out upon the pavement.

"After all this time wasted on melee and fire arms." Hermione breathed, falling onto her back in file with the other two.

"The entire fucking time we could have stayed at Hogwarts and Hogsmeade." Severus slapped himself in the forehead, rubbing down his sweat covered face.

"Ron, Harry, Luna, Minerva… even Draco… they could have still been alive today."

"My mom… dad… my baby sister…" Scott blinked into the sun.

"Humanity as a whole… we could have done something if we would have known."

A moment of silence rented the occupied air, carpet hovering higher. It was Hermione who was the first to laugh. Scott joined in and Severus threw in a few chuckles. The entire situation was so morbid, so disgusting that it was hilarious. Hermione's entire world had gone to shit, and it was the funniest thing she had ever experienced. Scott and Severus felt the same. Everyone they loved, except for each other, had died around them. They were picked off like flies, and the painful irony of it all was so painful… it was funny.

"We can do it. We can clean out an entire fucking area. Severus and I will man the wands obviously, you're one hell of a shot. We'll stay up here and clear them all out. Maybe then we can scavenge in peace." Hermione brought the carpet down once more, steading herself upon her feet. They stood back to back to back, ready to take on the world. The carpet jerked under the uneven weight as they began to throw spells and bullets every which way. The hoard started dwindling, but more kept coming. To say the city was infested would be an understatement, walkers dashing around corners. For a while, it seemed like the group was growing bigger despite the advances. With each wave of a wand and kickback of a gun, the carpet beneath their feet grew more unstable by the second.

Severus tossed a spell, causing Scott to lose his footing. Being inexperienced with how to balance on flying carpet and brooms, he was the first to fall. Hermione's world turned all too fast for her once she felt his shirt fabric scrap just past her fingertips. It wasn't a long fall, but the dead began to move towards him immediately. Hermione and Severus jumped down, fending off the army of zombies stumbling towards them.

"There's too fucking _MANY_!" Hermione screamed, arm growing tired of waving. Scott was shooting between the space where Hermione and Severus parted, doing the best he could to contribute to the fight. To the relief of the trio, the zombies started to really drop, no more running around corners to be a part of the action. Hermione started laughing harder than she did before, unable to believe how the managed to actually survive the wave of bullshit that just happened. She was soon tossed out of her victory, hearing a pained groan behind her. Hermione turned, seeing Scott gripping his torso.

It was like slow motion. As Hermione ran to Scott's side, skidding so hard on her knees that they started bleeding, the world blurred around her and she wanted to be sick. She pried his hands open, blood spurting from the scratch wounds upon his stomach. He must have gotten scratched on the fall because this obviously was not just an impact wound. Scott was already turning pale and hot to the touch.

"We can get a cure… we can keep you safe and-"

"There are rules… you gotta shoot 'em in the head…" Scott sputtered, blood seeping from between his lips. Hermione wept, leaned down to press her lips to him, but he pushed her away. Hermione hurt more than words could express. It was not that she loved Scott, she hadn't had the time to let it grow that far. When you spend an apocalypse with someone, you grow a certain bond.

"My blood… infected. Don't let… turn." Scott began to mumbled, tossing his head in the agony of changing. She held the wand to his forehead after placing a kiss there, bathing in the light smile upon his features.

"This was… a ride…"

"Yes… yes it was, Scott. Darling."

"Hermione… I... love you."

Then he was gone with a flash of green light.

The feral screams in the distance of LA didn't even register with Hermione as she cradled Scott in her arms. Severus gripped her shoulders, begging for her to come. A long beep ran through her ears as she turned and placed a soft kiss and Severus' lips. She didn't want to die without feeling him once more against her lips.

"Run… keep running." She looked down to Scott, fixing the glasses that had gone crooked from the fall. Severus pulled at her once more but she shrugged him off, handing him the gun bag.

"Run."

Severus looked at her, then the dead that started to crawl around the corner. He knocked them out with one vicious wave of his wand, kissing the top of her head as tears fell for the first time in years from his black eyes.

"I know this is so cliché, but I love you. I loved you when you were in my quarters, I loved you in your home, I loved you through every fight. I loved you when you chose Scott, I loved you in the bar. I loved you five minutes ago, I loved you three seconds ago, and I will love you for the rest of my life. I love you Hermione Granger."

"Run, Severus."

"I wanted to get married to you. I wanted to stay with you for good or ill. I will never open my heart up to another individual ever again because of your beautiful soul Hermione." The Slytherin man with the Gryffindor heart began to weep into her hair, crushing her within a deep embrace.

"Run, now!" Hermione barked, looking into the wound upon Scott's stomach.

"I love you more." Hermione managed to make out, looking up quick enough to see the dead begin to swarm once more.

**So, March Break had proven nothing to aid my writers block. I think in the next one or two chapters, I'm going to wrap the Viral Sequel up. **

**xoxoPN**


	12. 3,17,2012

**This is it, this is the end! **

**Most of you are probably going to have issues with how I end this story. I really don't care, I've done a lot of flexing for a lot of readers who have complained so far about the story. But since I first wrote Viral, before the sequel was even an IDEA, I know that this was the proper ending to it all.**

**If you like it? Fucking rad. If you hate it, go ahead and leave hate comments, you're going to die eventually ;D**

"That's it. I woke up a little later with Severus' cloak on my shoulders in a hospital bed." Hermione rasped, suddenly feeling very tired and emotionally drained from her story. She wiped the sweat off her forehead, Ron placing a hand on her shoulder.

"That sounds awfully hard, Miss. Thank you for telling me that. I know it must be hard to relive it."

"Have you come across them? Chell, Jim, or Severus?"

"No one by those names has been admitted yet. But let me page my sergeant and tell him to radio me if we find a survivor by one of those names." Ronald did as promised, his powerful voice doing nothing but agitating Hermione's growing headache. She yawned, ready for sleep to consume her.

"Since that night in the shelter, I find myself singing that song. _I Don't Want To Set the World On Fire_." She added in through the radio static.

"I'm sure a nuclear wasteland would be easier to survive than this hell on Earth." Ronald agreed, grabbing another glass of water for the very pale girl.

"Want to go for a walk? We've been cooped up on awful long time." She took her by the arm and led her outside to the back of the hospital. The dead were pressed against the large transparent walls placed the USA Army. Hermione looked to the ground, bag clutched to her side.

"What time is it?"

"It's four a.m, Hermione."

"How long were we in there?"

"About three hours. If you're worried about having bored me, you didn't. In fact, once this is all over, you could write a book about it all."

"Ronald, I haven't been entirely truthful with you. Seeing as how I'm going to die anyway, you might as well know." Hermione looked to the night sky, stars disguised by smog and smoke.

"You can tell me anything."

It was at that point Hermione realized just how good Ronald was at his job. He built a rapport with her, listened to her every word. If he was another of the Army clowns she heard of growing up, he was awfully good at protecting just how corrupt the Army was. It was too late now to use that to her advantage.

"I'm a witch. My professor is… was a potions master. My two friends, Harry and Ron, and I defeated a dark lord by the name of Voldemort so you think zombies wouldn't be much of a challenge. The killing curse that only wizards and witches can use puts them down for good. Seeing as you're not magic folk, or anyone in the army here, you're out of luck. Sorry you can't use it to your advantage. Trust me, I'd know if someone else was magic folk. It's like an unspoken energy surging through the air." Hermione shuffled her feet against the dirt, the echoes of sirens off in the distance in town.

"Hermione, you're delirious. It's understandable, after all you've been through."

"How can I prove it? Want me to levitate you? Maybe I could make water appear from my wand?" Hermione smiled softly, not being able to muster the strength to smile wider. She went to rifle through her bag, but her fingers wouldn't unclasp the buckle. She fell to her knees in defeat.

"I'm so tired…" Hermione sputtered, weeping at her own incompetence.

"You haven't eaten in days. Come on inside, I'll get you a real meal."

"No, I'll be fine. Can I just go to sleep now?" With Ronald's help, she was lifted to her feet. As they walked around, Ronald's radio buzzed softly. Hermione couldn't hear the conversation, but the boy sounded excited. Hermione's weak form was lifted into his arms and carried back towards the hospital.

"They found Severus. He's awake and alive. He is asking for you." Hermione laughed softly. Such a man, Severus was. Severus Snape: more loyal than anyone, including Harry Potter. She could feel herself perking up from the sleepy hold upon her. All she wanted was to see the man she adored. She walked into the room, shutting the door softly behind her.

"Hermione." Severus groaned as he tried to stand.

"How did you make it out alive?" Hermione stumbled over to the bed, the man pulling her up on the gurney with him. She examined his face carefully, running a finger over each wrinkle. Een with the world falling apart, he still managed to look younger every day. Hermione recalled a day Severus told her that it was her spirit making him young again.

"I hardly did… Hermione, I love you." Severus held her, tears falling into her hair.

"I'm sorry for Scott and leaving you for him. I don't even know what I was thinking." Hermione was stoic as ever, sitting up in the bed.

"That's the last of my worries, darling.

A moment of silence passed, the sounds of bombs falling and screaming zombies cutting through the dense morning air. Severus stroked Hermione's back covered by his cloak. She lay her head in the crook of Severus' neck, a gasp escaping the man's lips. He pulled her forehead away from his neck, tears streaming faster down his face.

"Hermione…"

"I know." Hermione stood, slipping the cloak past her shoulder. Her tank top was soaked in sweat, tears, and blood that seeped from the bite wounds on her back. She turned to face him, the front of her shirt ripped from their teeth bearing into her flesh in a feeding frenzy. She lay back down as Severus rolled up his shirt, bite marks strewn across it.

"I used a charm to hide the wounds… I wanted someone to know the story. I'm dying, Severus. Within a half hour it'll be over."

"Me as well."

"So… you do me, then do yourself? Other way around?" Hermione took Severus' wand, looking into his eyes.

"I can't…" He cried harder, kissing Hermione.

"Then we die here. Together." Hermione cast the strongest charm upon the door and window, wanting to protect the innocent from their rein. The witch hardly had the strength to crawl back into the hospital bed with Severus, coughing up thick blood.

It didn't take long until Hermione's breath started to hinder. Blood trickled down the side of her cheek, eyes shut and twitching. Sweat was pooling upon his shoulder where her head rested, but that was the last of his worries. Hermione's fever felt like fire against his neck, her seizure ridden body coming to an abrupt halt. Severus fell into darkness not long after, closing his eyes to the soldiers pounding on the door in.

Hermione and Severus would never know the effect they had upon the hospital safe house. The two zombies broke the threshold, bit two more. Four zombies turned to eight, and eight to sixteen, so the story goes. It wasn't much longer until the panic stricken individuals tried to run, breaching the barriers the Army had put up. The area they would know as their death because just another botched part of America, bleeding their dead into the rest of the world. The memories of their once happy lives lost in time.

Bullets flew through the air in a final stand, our two zombies in question shambling side by side. With two shots of a sniper rifle, the couple fell back into the hoard, leaving nothing but trampled corpses, who tried to hold each other's hands in one final, purely instinctual, proclaim of love.

**Well this was truly a great experience for me. I got some insults and some loyal readers along the way and I really appreciate those who were loyal. Like I said, if you hate this ending you can bitch and moan all you want, I'm sure you have a nice short life ahead of you and good luck with that. XD**

**The future of Viral is non-existent as of now, but I'll keep some readers posted on the entire ordeal. But I think anything further would be overkill. Get it? Overkill? Because I killed everyone?**

**Hahaha, okay. .-.**

**xoxoPN**


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